ABSTRACT
The performance of ordinary highway bridges with rocking/ fixed-base footings and inelastic columns was investigated by centrifuge modeling tests and numerical simulations. This paper discusses the mechanism of controlling a nonlinear part of a bridge by changing the moment capacity ratio of the footing to the associated column. It briefly presents two series of tests modeling single-degree-of-freedom bridges and whole bridge systems. Some models were designed specifically so that rocking footings could be mobilized and the performance of these models was compared with the non-rocking models. Two-dimensional numerical models are built using finite elements and compared to the experimental results of the SDOF models. The footings are simulated by 2-D beam-on-nonlinear-Winkler-foundation (BNWF) approach. The nonlinear behavior of columns was simulated by an elastic beam with a pre-determined plastic hinge. Numerical modeling is shown to be able to capture the crucial characteristics of a rocking footing.
